Jinja councilors vow to oust Mayor

Jinja councilors vow to oust Mayor

Flamboyant Jinja Mayor, Majid Batambuze is in trouble as his own councillors including the ones he personally financed to rise to leadership positions are now plotting to oust him.

The councillors allege that Batambuze is incompetent and should quit office. The Sunrise has learnt that at least 17 councillors have been holding secret meetings since this year began and unanimously agreed to boycott council meetings as they also work on a plot to throw the

‘failing’ mayor out of office.

The defiant councilors are being mobilised by George Izaale, the former Deputy Mayor in the previous Muhamad Kezaala administration, Faruwa Kitakule, Julius Kadooko Zakayo, Joel Onen, and Joweria Birungi. Others include Mariam Nalumansi, Florence Ssewanyana

Masese Parish, Kenneth Bakilye.

The 17 defiant councillors have leaves Batambuze in a difficult corner as he is left with just 10 councilors supporting him.

The defiant team started effecting its mission on Wednesday when a council meeting failed after these councillors declined to turn up.

Two other meetings allegedly called by Batambuze in his own office also failed when the officials he invited to help him find a solution to the crisis turned down the call.

The troubled councillors cite seven grounds upon including misuse of public resources, failure to implement their resolutions, failure to light up Jinja streets among others.

Councillors who boycotted Batambuze council say they will never attend any more council meeting until the mayor proves to the electorate that he has time to supervise the works going in town.

“People want to see him in this town doing the work of supervision. He wasn’t voted to go and sit in Kampala but at town hall,” councillor Joel Onen representing Masese 11 parish said. He added: “Should he not do what he is expected of, then give us just months to see him out of that office before Jinja town dies out.

Worse still, impeccable sources indicate that some councillors are plotting to pass a motion of no confidence against the deputy mayor Medius Asiimwe whom they accuse of incompetence and being naïve about leadership.

However, Deputy Mayor Asiimwe the deputy mayor says councilors are being influenced by some politicians in Jinja for personal interests to interfere with

their administration.

“My boss and some of us who were voted into power to serve public

interests are ready to engage all the our colleagues who feel nothing

is being done to come to around table to amicably forge a way-forward”

Jinja Coucil Speaker Moses Bizitu pledged to work to break the impasse: “I am considering another council next week on Tuesday such that our colleagues come and we agree on what should be done for our community together other than playing a blame game”